Travel agencies also offer a Facebook tour, a Jane Austen tour, and gastronomic programs

In addition to the eternal classics, the repertoire includes many novelties, and the shift towards thematic offerings is becoming more and more typical, as there is an increasing demand for trips that serve special interests (gastronomic, active, literary, musical). The booking data received so far is encouraging, there is a lot of interest from passengers. It is a common experience that more and more people are choosing to collect experiences instead of buying consumer durables.

The organization of the programs is made more difficult by the growing demand for travel worldwide and the extremely high popularity of certain destinations. For this reason, the preparation of group trips requires more and more work, you have to start booking appointments earlier and earlier, and finding service providers with a good price-value ratio is not easy either. Possible airline strikes, schedule changes and flight cancellations may also present difficult situations to travelers this year.

Over 90 percent occupancy at Fehérvár Travel

This year’s catalog of Fehérvár Travel’s cultural tours includes 155 types of programs and takes you to more than 65 countries at nearly 500 dates. More than 400 groups have been announced from December to the beginning of March, and the late autumn trips beyond Europe will only be finalized during April. More than 16,000 people have booked more than 410 group trips made available until the beginning of March, and the programs are more than 90 percent full.

All of the routes in the 2023 catalog can be found in this year’s offer as well. The eight-day Crete and Rhodes program and the five-day star tour of Moravia are new, and the Alpine and domestic offerings have also been expanded.

The eight-day Crete and Rhodes program is new at Fehérvár Travel

Photo: 123rf.com

“We increased the number of groups and a price increase was also necessary, so our sales revenue is expected to be much higher than last year,” he said. András Ribi, the chief employee of the office. They are confident that the euro exchange rate will not change in an unfavorable direction either.

Nearly 50 colleagues work in their office, which is slightly more than the number before covid. Their fleet of 15 luxury buses was updated and expanded: at the beginning of 2024, two brand new Neoplan buses and one MAN type bus arrived at their premises, so the average age of the buses operated by their subsidiary, Fehérvár Travel Busz Kft., is four and a half years. The planning of their new IT system is in progress, and it is expected to be installed by the end of the year. The new system makes information related to applications and starting groups more convenient, faster and more accurate for passengers and colleagues.

Programs for routine world travelers and Jane Austen fans from OTP Travel

“The range from spring to autumn includes nearly 100 group city visits, cruises and cruises from 43 countries, travelers can choose from more than 170 dates,” he told our newspaper. Réka Tófalvihead of OTP Travel’s travel business.

Their new gastronomic tours introduce travelers to the special tastes and experiences of Istanbul, the Baltic States, and Porto. Bordeaux, Mallorca, Stockholm, Dublin and Cairo await those who like city visits. Those who are attracted by the charm of untouched nature can go on adventures from the Azores to Vietnam, from Scotland to Borneo. Their new programs presenting the treasures of Saudi Arabia, Azerbaijan and Bhutan are aimed at routine world travelers.

OTP Travel offers a wide selection for those who like city visits

Photo: 123rf.com

A real treat for Jane Austen and Downtown Abbey fans is the autumn cruise to southern England, which also visits the Jane Austen Festival. The range of North American programs has been expanded with a family trip combining New York with Miami, a program including a mini cruise on the Miami-Key West-Bahamas route, and a cruise to Eastern Canada. During the latter, in the company of Varnus Xavér, travelers can discover the sights of Nova Scotia with unparalleled musical experiences. The selection of group cruises also has new features.

A few years ago, they started their tours with the fanciful name “culture with teenagers”, which include a city visit in Istanbul, a program combining Egyptian adventures with a vacation in Hurghada, and a cruise to South Korea.

The occupancy of the roads is developing according to expectations, at the moment the saturation of the trips until autumn is almost 50 percent. “We have to reckon with the elimination of Israel, but at the same time, the number of trips to Japan, China and other Far East countries has multiplied compared to recent years,” we learned.

The website of the agency collecting boat trips (hajosut.hu) underwent a significant transformation last year, and this renewal will continue with the otptravel.hu website until the end of this year.

In 2023, the company was the first in Hungary to receive the Travelife Partner international certificate, thereby officially recognizing their commitment to responsible travel.

Facebook tours and distant destinations offered by Budavár Tours

Cruises represent a significant proportion of Budavár Tours’ offer. Enticing one- to three-day trips to neighboring countries are becoming more and more popular, with 15,000 passengers taking them each year. Among the excursions, there are many cultural and active programs, spring herbal and flower tours are becoming more and more popular. Although the work invested in the organization is significant, with these so-called “Facebook tours” they can appeal to a lower-paying, but open-to-travel segment, who are also happy to post their photos taken at their favorite hiking spots.

The other face of the office in terms of cruises is the high-quality programs for demanding travelers, with which they can appeal to 4-5,000 people a year. Their two most important destinations are Morocco, programmed since 2002, and Jordan, launched six years ago.

Jordan is one of the most important destinations of Budavár Tours

Photo: 123rf.com

Their demand for exotic cruises is also constantly growing, this year they are launching three to four groups to Japan and four to five to China, and they are also taking trips to Vietnam and Cambodia, as well as to Syria and Egypt. New is the small-group adventure tour to Jordan, with programs such as spending the night on a rock wall or in a cave.

The 1000 Út Travel Office will also take you to the treasures of local cuisine

A total of 88 countries, 150 cruises and 311 departure dates are listed in the catalog of the 1000 Út Travel Agency. New in their offer is a cruise to Bhutan and Sikkim, as well as a guiding program to Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, as well as an enticing trip to New York, the west coast of the USA, Madeira and Porto Santo, and Cairo. Their passengers can see Northern Norway in the light of the midnight sun and go on winter adventures in Lapland.

“In the field of gastronomy, we are still motivated by the compilation of outstanding quality programs,” he told our newspaper. Yaroslav Gorsky office manager. Their culinary programs now include not only European and Mediterranean programs, but also special domestic ones.

The specialist said that in the first two months of this year, they achieved an outstanding turnover, and they definitely expect a turnover exceeding that of 2023. The team is constantly being expanded, and they are working on the development of the administration system.

The Z(s)eppelin Travel Agency is 30 years old

In the period from spring to autumn, Z(s)eppelin, which is 30 years old this year, plans nearly 170 different programs and a total of 496 groups.

“There is no white spot in Z(s)eppelin’s program offering in Europe, and beyond Europe we have targeted countless overseas destinations,” he declared Tamás Zsebok office manager. In addition to the usual Vietnam-Cambodia tour and Dubai programs, a group will be sent to South Korea on two dates. Also new in the offer is the summer farewell in Madeira, the big cruise in Portugal, the long weekend in Madrid, the flight to London, the program visiting the ducal palaces of Milan and Lombardy.

AZ(s)eppelin also starts a group in South Korea

Photo: 123rf.com

This year, special attention will be paid to the thematic programs, the three main motifs being gastronomy, nature and cars. “We travel along gastronomic experiences in Italy, the Czech Republic, Transylvania and Greece, while we devote ourselves to nature walks in Tyrol, Carinthia and Slovakia. For those who are obsessed with cars, we offer Ferrari, Lamborghini and Maserati factory visits in Italy, and in Germany our passengers can discover the factories of Audi, Mercedes, BMW and Porsche with us.”On the occasion of its thirtieth anniversary, the office launched a national radio campaign and announced year-round prize draws.Their passengers are assisted by a new website and a new integrated reservation system. In January, they started building a new 5,000-square-meter site to accommodate their bus fleet.

Novelties and old favorites in the Premio Travel range

By 2024, Premio Travel will offer 32 tours, the programs will cover 28 countries, with 182 departure dates.

“For 12 years, our Turkish tours have been very popular, of which five types can be booked,” he informed Andrea Ráth director. The Istanbul-Ankara-Cappadocia tour is new to the offer. Passengers fly to the programs on 180-passenger charter planes in March, April, October and November. A total of 14 dates were announced for spring and early summer, and 9 for autumn.

In addition to Turkey, Dubai, the USA and the Amalfi Coast have been popular destinations in their offer for years. New this year are Bali, Georgia, South Africa, Oman and the United Arab Emirates, as well as Uzbekistan.

“Compared to 2022, we doubled our sales by 2023, and by March of this year we reached nearly 55 percent of the same period of 2023. This year, we expect at least a 50 percent increase,” said the expert about their expectations.

Safari Travel invites you to four countries in Africa

The Safari Travel Agency, celebrating its 25th anniversary this April, combines African safari programs with an oceanside vacation. The trips can start with them several times throughout the year to Kenya, Tanzania and Zanzibar, as well as to Senegal, which is new this year – we learned from the owner of the office, From László Luttenberg. Their passengers can see the great animal migration, which can only be seen in Kenya and Tanzania in the world.

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Our article was originally published in the April 2024 issue of Turizmus.com Magazine. If you want to subscribe to the paper, you can do so at this link.